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Love, love, love this one! Incarceron (Incarceron, Book 1) was my first venture into the world of steampunk and it was a perfect introduction. This is definitely a page-turner, so don’t pick it up unless you have time to sit down and read it straight though. I found myself on the edge of my seat, couch, and even grass (I read outside for a bit). I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to Claudia, Finn, and the rest of the characters.

The world-building is top-notch. It’s steampunk without being annoying. What do I mean? I’ve been hesitant to pick up steampunk because the few pages I read of various books just struck me as too unbelievable. I know, I know- it’s science fiction/fantasy, so what could I be looking for? I honestly don’t know. It just rubbed me the wrong way. But not Catherine Fisher’s world. I loved it from the first page. There are actually two worlds- Claudia’s world in the “Outside” and Finn’s world in Incarceron. Both are intricate but Fisher also allows you to imagine parts of it yourself. A lot of my students complain about authors who are “too into description” and they certainly won’t have that problem with Fisher’s writing.

The characterization is also great. Take Claudia, for example. She is pretentious, annoying, and overbearing. But I still liked her. She has been raised in a ridiculous world and is a product of that world. She has redeeming qualities, of course- she is smart, compassionate, and often made me laugh. Finn, thankfully, is no victim. I liked him a lot, and he is no Edward. (Thank goodness!) He doesn’t know who he is, how he ended up in Incarceron, or where and what Incarceron is. And the secondary characters are also great. I was especially partial to Claudia’s tutor.

I highly recommend this one. A word of warning, though- you will be dying for the sequel. I am so happy that I grabbed an ARC of Sapphique at BEA. ;)